Less of Me
by Atchair
Summary: AU, post-GONE. Discontinued sequel to Mad Friends.
1. Counting

**Disclaimer:** Gone™ is owned by Michael Grant and all those different publisher companies.

**Author note/warnings:** This is an experimental semi-sequel (originally named 'Little Darling') to _Mad Friends_, but can without problems be read separately. Each chapter is inspired by a song. I wanted to try something completely different, we'll see how it goes.

Dearest beta-reader **DreamCatcher96** thinks that this is extremely creepy, but in a good way. Will have very graphic violence and gore later on, along with angsty themes and a very Dark!Gaiaphage, 'cos I recall how fun it was writing him that way in MF. As said in the summary, this isn't a fluffy romance fic, folks.

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**Less of Me**

**Part 01: **

**Counting**

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_"The world is a vampire, sent to drain_

_Secret destroyers, hold you up to the flames_

_And what do I get, for my pain?_

_Betrayed desires, and a piece of the game"_

"Bullet with Butterfly Wings"; Smashing Pumpkins

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Rocks pierced Drake Merwin's feet through the worn material of his onyx militarily boots, used only because his favourites were soaked in blood after Caine's sudden murder some nights ago. He didn't mind though - after intense hunger had tortured him for so long, he'd become quite accustomed to pain.

Despite it, he continued on into the Darkness' lair, temperature rising, making him sweat and pant for each step. He was on the road to an underground cave in the middle of a desert, and expected Hellish flames to pop up any minute.

It felt like he'd been walking for hours now, but the nausea didn't lessen. The air there was heavier than outside and even worse than at Coates! In there it smelt like nothing but starvation and madness, and one gained the same sort of feel one got when walking through an asylum for the criminally insane.

Was it madness that had driven him to this... this... _madness_?

Life in the FAYZ had allowed him to unleash the animal inside; letting him stifle his sadistic needs without any limits. Drake missed the rush of excitement and all the killings that had occurred when Caine Soren had taken over Perdido Beach, only to be thrown back into the madhouse shortly afterwards along with a fallen king who was now suffering from hallucinations and multiple personalities thanks to his previous encounter with the Darkness.

Maybe it was boredom. Boredom and frustration. It gnawed on his very _soul_, creating a consuming black hole in his stomach; the feel of doing nothing, achieving nothing, waiting for _nothing_.

In his head, Drake still couldn't comprehend his blindness towards this subject; how he'd believed to be in control although he'd felt _dependence_ towards some monster. In reality, he'd been just as dependent on the Gaiaphage as Soren. He imagined masses upon masses of people laughing at him with glee, glad over how low he'd fallen, how ignorant he'd been.

Pushing past a few rocks, he suddenly lost his footing. Drake stumbled forward like a common drunk until he crashed into a hard surface. Shakily, he stood up and waved away all the dirt clouds rising around him, coughing up dust, eyes stinging.

The first thing he saw was that the cave was bigger than last time he'd been there, walls almost carved out to suit the doer's needs. Then the clouds fell, slowly. He even could hear his own heart speed up.

Of all the things Drake had expected, this was not one of them.

A man sat there on an earth throne. His skin was pale and his hair as white as snow, dressed in tattered remains of some sort of work suit. His expression was shocked, but not entirely, and went to smug within seconds. He was also very thin, almost like a skeleton. The most abnormal part of him was the eyes, though - they burned with green flames that had an almost radioactive glow to them.

After a while of just silently regarding each other, the odd man spoke, voice somehow double-edged and high-pitched, sounding almost hoarse.

"No 'I tremble in your august pretence' or 'Spare me o holy creature' or even a 'How are you... master?'" The man smiled wickedly, and Drake felt like this was no man at all. "Tch, that is rather disappointing. Do you even know why you are here?" this strange human asked, thin lips parting and turning into a half-grin.

Drake didn't answer at once.

Truth to be told, Drake had refused up until this point to acknowledge what had driven him to such an abrupt madness. He cherished life, didn't he? The life that flowed through his veins in the form of blood, allowing adrenaline from sadistic excitement to rush through his body. Right now he just felt ill.

Subconsciously, it was a simple realization that had made him seek out this hell.

At once, it became very clear to him. His upper lip curled over his teeth in a perfect sneer, "I'm nobody's slave. I'm Drake fucking Merwin, I bow to no one. You didn't give me my whip arm," he spat onto the ground, "the Healer did. I owe you nothing, you fucking creature. And I came here to tell ya that."

Yes, to get his pride back, Drake had adventured out here all alone in one errand only - to break their mental connection. Not that he had any idea how, which became very evident in the next minute.

"I see. And how to do you plan to do that?" Drake's knuckles turned white. "You are no planner; you are a mere soldier, always a pawn, unable to think for yourself. A dog, going from master to master, either it be me or your mad king. Much like another boy..."

His emerald eyes became distant and his grin wicked when he thought about another pawn in the game, Drake's favourite nemesis, but all signs of future mischief were gone in a second. "But that is for another time, another time indeed."

Drake was far too shocked to care for hidden clues and meanings. He had never been a patient boy either; he'd nearly shot the head off neighbour's son because of some taunting, which was what got him shipped to the madhouse in the first place. It was only logical for him to stutter out one of thousand questions in odd situations like these.

"How... How are you _even_... How the hell are you-"

"Feeling?" the man helped. "Well I'm not feeling fine, 'cos this blonde little shit strolled into my lair, sure that he could kill me."

The smile never faltered, not once.

Not even when Drake was shoved backwards by a force much stronger than Caine Soren's power, crashing into a sharp, stoic wall, the blow knocking the air out of him. A strangled exhale left him as he fell back on the ground, struggling to breathe. Luckily his leather jacket had taken most of the blow.

"I thought using crude language might make you understand."

The man just stood there, arms crossed.

"Who... Who _are_ you?"

"Shouldn't that be obvious by now?" He paused, sighing when Drake gave no verbal response. Then he smirked, "I am the Gaiaphage. I highly suspect it might be a little too much for you, so you might call me Gaia for short."

The amused looked Drake received showed that 'Gaia' was enjoying himself.

"No fuckin' way," Drake spat. "You're not... You can't be..." Taking a hold of himself, Drake ignored all his own doubt. "He's... _It's_ much stronger than you, and it's not even... _human_."

"Ignorance and arrogance kill, little darling. Look at you, flinching as soon as I step closer! You're harmless to me, an insect that I've taken enough pity upon to not crush. I can certainly be many things, human and merciful, both of which I am now." Gaia was too close now, way too close, but Drake could do nothing but press himself up against the cave wall as Gaia's hand caressed his chin, forcing the sadist to look up.

"Though having mercy isn't the same as forgiving, little one."

The next Drake knew was pain and pain only.

Accustomed to it? Not in such large scales, not this sort of monstrous torment that that started in his tiptoes and went up through his entire body to the very tips of his fingers. In the midst of it all, he recalled that the aftermath of falling out a window had been almost been as bad, but he couldn't remember how or when it had happened. This pain raced through his bones and flesh, and he screamed himself voiceless.

Then it all stopped, and Drake was left as a gasping mess on the ground. There wasn't any outer damage, but he still felt sore after the torture session, sore on the inside.

"You're much cuter when you're quiet. However, I didn't desire your pretence and keep you alive because you'd be an adorable mute, I wanted to summon you because I needed a proper slave. Thankfully you came waltzing right into my slave like a willing dog and saved me the energy of getting you. Had it been before this little accidental discovery of yours, probably provoked by a misplaced word or two, you'd probably come running like a good soldier."

Just the thought of serving another human being, existing only to make them happy without payment made his blood boil. Burning rage served him new energy to resist, and to shakily try get up. After a few intense intakes of oxygen, he managed to brokenly stutter out something audible, "G-Go to hell!"

Gaia put a foot on his back, pressing him down again. "Oh but Drakie, we're already there."

Next thing Drake knew was earth to his face. He panted, facing a horrible defeat.

"I _am_ the Gaiaphage, and you _are_ my slave, do not doubt it. From now on you will call me master, or I will skin you alive and then sew it back on. My powers are still great, although concealed in this shell."

"How...?"

Gaia pushed his left foot to Drake's face, stomping on him a bit, and then rolled him over at his back with the same foot, disgusted by Drake's weakened state. Drake kept his eyes closed and reached up to hold his broken nose. Quiet humiliation was better than seeing Gaia's expression, as if his master (_'No! I will not call him that, never!'_) was disappointed in him for not physically fighting back. "You forgot the master," Gaia chided.

"H-How did you become like this, _m-master_?" Oh god, Drake felt the need to threw up in his mouth a little. How he hated that word after realizing how he sounded to others, and to himself too - like a whiny slave bitch. And Drake was no one's slave.

Unaware of Drake's thoughts, Gaia studied his own body, holding out his arm as if it was something foreign to him. "I recreated this skin from particles coming from a man's half-eaten flesh. Flies buzzed around me as I seeped into the bones, curving up around the ribcage until I reached **the heart**."

He paused. "The coyotes proved themselves useful for once and dragged him here in an attempt to please, and boy did it prove useful."

"That's disgusting. ...master," he added a little hurriedly, blinking rapidly.

"I work with what I get." Gaia neared him, keeping Drake immobile with a flicker of his sickly pale hand. With it he cupped up Drake's face by his chin again, smiling. "Would you rather that I used your body? It would've been easy, summoning you here for that purpose only. Like I said, a few hours ago, before you _thought_, you'd happily run over here like an obsessive deluded lover."

"W-Why...?"

The hold tightened. "Why _what_?"

"Why did you become human, master?"

"I thought that small disasters would easily wipe you ignorant humans off so that I'd win the game," Gaia said. "Pieces fell, yes, but it didn't slaughter all of you, and thus I lost many rounds and had to rebuild my power in this stupid mineshaft. Why, I even thought about releasing a plague, but knowing you wretched humans, you'd somehow survive. And if I sent someone in my place, my powers would've been limited. Then, just like you, I started _thinking_, if not harder."

Gaia let go, extending his arms while explaining, caught up in his own words like a mad scientist on television in the preFAYZ times explaining his new scheme to destroy world.

"I had the answer right here in the palm of my hand the entire time! I was too blind to see it, but natural disasters only reduce the number of your species without extinguishing all of you. You see, when you strip away words like 'necessary' or 'for the greater good', it all become very clear."

Emerald eyes burned, and Drake had to look away again.

"_Humans_ kill _themselves_," Gaia finished rather smugly.

"So how to approach this splendid conclusion? Why, become a piece myself, and lead the others into doomsday. I have waited here, waited and waited and waited for weeks, planning out the perfect strategy to bring them all to hell." He giggled hysterically and turned to Drake, "And you will help me with that, my slave."

"I said I want to fucking part of it! I'm out!"

"...But first I need to straighten out that attitude of yours. Do not worry, I will patch you up again afterwards if I get too carried away, because you will not leave this world yet."

Gaia stepped closer, smiling, "I'm going to enjoy breaking you, Drake Merwin."

Best thing was; no one would hear his screams as they echoed through the lair.

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"I find this interesting."

It was a sudden confession made by Astrid in-between her hopeless comforting and heavy breaths. She, like the rest of the little team, had been walking for an hour now and her feet hurt, so she tried to start a conversation to get her mind off the pain.

There was a short silence before anyone spoke.

Tenseness grew, Edilio, Dekka and even Astrid felt it.

"_Interestin'_?" Sam spat.

"Interest can be both negative and positive Sam," Astrid defended herself rather quietly, not wanting to fight, but unable to hide her explanation. She believed he would understand, but in the current circumstances, it changed only for the worse. "There is interest for the bad, like the morbid fascination young males have for horror flicks and dangerous sports and explosions. Then there is positive interest, like caring for the well-being of others and studying things for scientific value."

"Thanks Astrid, enlightening me that I'm equitant to something monstrous out of a horror movie. Tell me, do you think I'm more Pennywise the Clown or Frank from Donnie Darko? I'm _so _interested in hearing." Salvia flew everywhere as he spoke, the lisp even worse than three days ago when it all had happened. Hidden beneath all the venom in his words, there was hurt.

"I said nothing about you resembling a creature, Sam," Astrid retorted with mild annoyance - how could he not comprehend that his sudden change of appearance could mean something big was going to happen and had great scientific value? "I'm just saying that this could save lives!"

Why wouldn't he let her even touch him?

Sam had his teeth gritted together while he spoke, not putting a lot of pressure on them, but it still hurt. "Keep quiet," he hissed, and cared little for science's benefit, it seemed.

"I was just trying to say-"

In a moment of repressed rage, he'd turned around and growled at her like an inhuman beast (just like the ones he believed she had compared him to); or like that of a hostile wolf, perhaps. "Shut up!"

Her eyes widened in the time Sam took a sharp intake of breath, anger building up inside him.

"I've had enough of it! All this analyzing, all this talking like I'm not even there. Like the mutation ruins me; like I turned into some kind of animal in the process!" His voice rang with desperation. "Are you that uncaring for my mental well-being, Ellison? Stop regarding me as a beast, 'cos I'm not, and I don't need to be put on a leash, okay?" When he took a step forward, Astrid fell backwards, making Sam even angrier that she was actually scared. "I'm _not_ some rat in a biology protect! I'm not a fucking animal!"

That last sentence became considerably louder.

Then there was the sound of thousand knives being drawn across each other, and Sam hissed at her, malevolent when it came to Astrid's reaction. She'd started hyperventilating, never having seen his mutation on close hold. Not that he was very close though, still a few meters away since he'd insisted on walking ahead of them.

A hand on his shoulder stopped him. "That's quite enough, Sam. I know you're angry and you have every goddamn right in the world to be so. But taking it out on any of us won't change anything." When he turned towards her, she swore his pupils had thinned, making him even more reptile like. Still, she could not see him as anything other but a fallen comrade, and a good friend.

Sam observed her for a minute, and then clicked his jaw back into place, again producing that horrible sound only heard in major battles in historic movies. He swallowed thickly, shameful, licking his dry lips.

"It isn't your fault," Edilio said reassuringly in that quiet way of his.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" Dekka asked with a sympathetic look. Her hold on his shoulder hadn't lessened and somehow, he felt safe. "You're bleeding. Open your mouth."

Slowly, because of her tough tone, he dared to do it. Dekka's eyes widened, but not with fear. It was worse than last time she'd checked. These teeth no longer belonged to that of a fifteen-year-old boy, this seemed to belong more to a Great White Shark, or a foreign sea creature that only existed in movies. They were silvery in colour, long and thin, though she somehow knew they could cut right into flesh. Some were smaller than others, and varied in size. There had yet to be more than two rows less than millimetres apart, but she swore she could see another row forming in the back.

Dekka blinked several times before she could look back at him. Sam was just grateful she hadn't screamed. "It's just a small wound in the back of the upper row. It seems- ...It seems like your mouth has some trouble adjusting to the new... teeth, but from what I've seen the mouth will grow to fit them eventually."

Sam nodded slightly.

"When you spoke to much you cut yourself, but the mouth heals rather fast, so I wouldn't worry. But I would not recommend talking too much, in case you'll reopen the wound after it's grown and get an infection," she finished, speaking matter-of-factly.

His head continued to go up and down all while she spoke, and a sigh left him. He turned towards Astrid, who had now gotten up and was brushing dirt off her clothes. Sam bit his lip, "Look, I'm s-"

Brianna chose that moment to cut him off, though not intentionally, "Are you going to hurry up or what? We won't get to Coates in this tempo."

The tense atmosphere had been there since the start of the walk, partly because Sam believed he could turn into a flesh-eating monster any moment and chew their heads off and party because they believed it, too. This was the fourth outburst in the span of six days, and it had gotten considerably worse since the last time.

"Do you even know why we're here?" Edilio asked tiredly, a little glad to have changed the subject.

"To see if Coates have experienced any of the same, since Sam and Soren are twins and all. I think it's a bad idea, especially since we all came. Who's gonna guard the city if that stupid Human Crew," she spat the name, "snaps and decides to slaughter innocents?"

"Albert and Howard are there, and far more kill-them-at-once than those two saints," Dekka defended jokingly, pointing at Astrid and Sam. The former just rolled her eyes dismissively, while Sam looked away, feeling more like a demon than a saint because of his apperance. "And Brianna will run down again as soon as she'd make sure the Coates guys haven't maimed us or something, and then up here again, thus working as a link between us and the town."

"I also ordered my men to be on the lookout in case anything major happened," Edilio said. "It'll be fine. We wouldn't let you go alone, we're allies."

"...and friends," Astrid said quietly, and that was the first thing she'd said after Sam's little outburst.

It made Sam smile sadly on how she still backed him up after what he'd done. _'Fool.'_

Brianna broke the silence, "Except _maybe_ meet a mutated ex-tyrant, what do you all think happen when we get there?"

None of them know what would happen, but all of them knew going back wasn't an option. Not when Sam's teeth were growing and so did a sudden bad temper and he'd be viewed even more as a monster when coming back. It was left unsaid how seeing their protector turning into a monster, many townies would probably support the intolerant idealisms of the Human Crew. Fear was one of the main reasons for hatred after all.

The last thing Perdido Beach needed was a civil war.

Sam sighed, speaking hurriedly. He wasn't supposed to talk, but couldn't stand the silence, "Maybe Soren knows what to do. He always insists on being the smarter and prettier one."

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**A/N:** Fun fact: Believe it or not, originally the Gaiaphage was going to be named Gaia in my story, and it shocked me when (spoiler) FEAR did the same thing. I have proof somewhere in my oneshot collection, I think, but I'm forgetful. (*´・ｖ・) It's sorta cool anyhow.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave some feedback along with the CC - constructive criticism - I adore so much.


	2. Bodies

**Disclaimer:** Gone™ is the property of Mr. Grant. The Series also belongs to HarperCollins in Canada but Schibsted Forlag AS in Norway. The FAYZ name sound cooler in Norwegian. Can't beat _REBUS_.

**A/N:** Thank you **DreamCatcher96** for beta'ing, and thank you to those who read, reviewed and favourite'd! (: I think I've used this song in an oneshot before, but whatever.

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**Less of Me**

**Part 02: **

**Bodies**

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_"This ain't no place for no hero_

_This ain't no place for no better man_

_This ain't no place for no hero_

_To go home__"_

"Short Change Hero"; The Heavy

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Drake was vaguely aware that there was sand underneath his feet.

If his eyes had been devoid of emotion from before, they were now hollow like if someone had gauged them out and left black holes in his skull. The memories of the endless pain were still fresh in his mind; as fresh as the self-inflicted wounds on his wrists that had occurred when Gaia had twisted his mind to the point where it was unbearable, bringing up each shameful memory and playing it in the boy's mind again and again.

He'd hurt himself. Anything to make it stop. Anything.

_"One has to break down to build up,"_ Gaia had said with that damned smile of his as he'd forced up a particular scary memory of his former shrink's last decision, the one that decided that Drake needed medication. Mental veins had probed his mind, making him imagine himself gobbling down all of those horrible pills.

It had made him squirm and scream and cry and beg.

Every defense he'd put up had been shattered, every locked drawer in his mind had been opened, and every dark corner of his mind had been explored and polished 'for the better'.

Did Gaia think he justified himself with what he did when he gave Drake new powers and a few guns? It was as if to say 'I can violate your mind in every way possible but here's a few toys so now we're even'? It was as if Gaia thought that Drake should be grateful to him.

Even so, there were some remains of him deep inside. He could still think for himself, if not just a tad, because Gaia still enjoyed playing with his emotions.

_"Think if I'd broken you!"_ he'd told Drake,_ "You'd be no fun! I'm so glad we got to know each other before I did... You are quite a fascinating specimen, failing to break. You're mad, but still saner than most. You've seen the big picture, and you're not held back by foolish feelings like love and happiness. Yet you refuse to die, clinging into your last bits of humanity while at the same time denying that you possess any."_

But Gaia, now somewhat human, had grown bored after a while and thrown him away like a child tired of a new plaything. So after the soulless sand-blonde drenched in blood and sweat had been allowed a few breathing moments in the corner of the cave, Gaia had given his new slave his first order.

"Bring **him** to me. Kill every obstacle."

Images had flashed before Drake's eyes and he'd shuddered, knowing Gaia didn't even need to strain himself to enter his head anymore. If Drake resisted, if not only on instinct, a horrible headache would appear. So no objection came from him as he said, "Yes, master."

At the moment, he was walking through a desert, replaying all of this in his head.

Drake Merwin was going to Coates.

He swore he hear ominous laughter echoing around in his head - another sign of what damage Gaia had done to him in those few hours, and what more was to come.

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The goodie-two-shoe group hadn't spoken much after the last banter.

Sam had dried the blood that streamed in small rivers down from his mouth, pretending to cough and hold his arm there to disguise it. After that he'd sped up again, keeping a distance between himself and them, not wanting anymore fear, so sick of it all.

Some time later, they reached Coates, and Brianna was the first to see it. She stopped, and wordlessly stared at the grand building. Vines climbed up along the once majestic fence that had once been a beautiful reminder on what kind of parents that owned these kids - the rich one, though now looked like they were taken out of a horror show.

As they walked further, Sam noted that the grass that hadn't been cut for ages looked like an impenetrable jungle, so big one could no longer see the foundation wall of the school. The rosebushes' branches looked like hands reaching out for the windows, and he couldn't understand how kids here could sleep without pissing themselves. Sam would never have managed to sleep there with those branches looking like fingers scraping at the windows during the night. Sam knew his achluophobia (Astrid had introduced him to the complicated name of his little fear of the dark issue) would've gotten even worse if he'd lived here.

Maybe the kids here were insane enough to ignore it, no matter what age.

If it was a madhouse disguised as a school, Astrid wasn't certain. What she did know, however, was that those who had stayed with king Caine didn't seem to be in their right minds. Drake Merwin was a perfect example on just that, and...

Damn. Merwin wouldn't be too happy about seeing Sam, would he?

Luckily, Sam hadn't thought about it much, because this trip had been a spur-of-the-moment decision. He suddenly wondered what had gotten him to do this, or why his friends had agreed so quickly. Although Sam was far too naïve to understand, the rest of the team knew why they'd brought him up here, even if it was forbidden to say it out loud.

_'Monsters belong in madhouses.'_

Astrid stared at what had become her ex-boyfriend (he'd insisted they would have a break when his little temper issue had grown), seeing how Sam was staring with an open mouth at the garden jungle, and she shuddered when she saw giant razors twinkling in ivory, yet somehow seemed silvery, like steel.

What an utterly _amazing_ job she had done hiding her fear for him when he'd advanced some minutes ago, cowering before him like he was a monster. Her eyes drifted to Coates again, wondering why they hadn't been shot at, and then back at Sam.

Sam caught her looking, and gave her an uneasy smile. Astrid pretended not to have noticed, feeling quite guilty about what she saw the person she once had claimed to love as. But what was she supposed to do when his temper had gotten so bad it seemed like he'd snap any moment and eat someone's heart with those teeth of his?

She remembered trying a way adult psychology book in seventh grade where she'd read that fear and love were the most basic of human emotions, and the most different, or something along those lines. When he'd yelled and hissed at Astrid, making her scream in terror like a motherless toddler no matter how hard she tried not to... Had that fear destroyed her crush on the cute, laidback surfer boy?

That was her last thoughts on the subject, because suddenly there were three Coates guys with guns all pointed at them standing there. Their clothes were ripped and their faces looked like they'd been interrupted during sleep, yet they eyes were hard and unforgiving. Diana stepped forward, standing right behind them, arms crossed. The only reason why the three boys hadn't blown someone's head off yet was because Diana had told them not to.

"We're not here to fight," Edilio said, though in contrast to his words his hand rested on his gun. He felt relieved that it wasn't Merwin they'd met - if so, he guessed this meeting would've been far bloodier by now. Still, having a weapon felt safer around people from Coates.

"Get lost," one of the guards grumbled with a deep scowl.

"Paint here is correct," Diana said dismissively. "This isn't some tourist paradise, townies. You're not welcome here. If you won't leave, we'll be forced to take drastic measures. And don't think that your plural will help you - our weapons are far more dangerous than your freak powers."

Letting the piece of information sink in for a moment, she tilted her head to the side. She found every single weak point of their armour and hit it with full strength, though she displayed no joy. "I also know none of you would be able to forgive yourselves if someone got their head blown off. _Leave_. I won't tell you twice."

"Wouldn't Soren or Merwin usually do the evil overlord speeches?" Brianna mocked.

"None of them are here," Diana answered simply. Dekka and Sam shared a look. "I'm sorry if Ellison has convinced you to go back to the thirties where women are good-for-nothing baby machines and only exist for men's pleasure like it is described in the Bible. 'Cos despite my gender, I'm fully capable of making these guys shoot you. Want an example?" She snapped her fingers.

A few bullets barely missed Sam.

The three guards standing beside her smirked, glad to have someone smart to lead the word so the townies wouldn't trick them into something stupid. If Merwin had been here, he'd just asked them to massacre the whole team.

Where was that psycho git anyway? They assumed Diana knew. She seemed to lead the (horror) show now that Caine was... well...

"Shut up, Ladris," Dekka said, "We're not here to throw insults at each other."

But Brianna crossed her war-sister's words, always wanting the last word. "_Thieves_," she hissed, staring directly at Diana, as if it was she who'd run down to Perdido, stolen the food and made the situation even bleaker in Perdido Beach. "We have enough problems and we're twice as many as you; did you really have to go as low as stealing?"

Diana didn't mind the harsh words - she was used it. Sexualized by boys and men, she held no grudges against angry jealous girls (or boys, on rare occasions), refusing to get upset over stupid people since there apparently were so many of them. Knowing it would get her no way with the angry girl, she didn't even bother to state that the people on Coates would've starved to death hadn't Merwin risked his life to get them some food.

"Look, is this some half-assed attempt to take back shit we stole or what?" Diana asked, and the tired tone of her voice surprised all of them. What could she possibly do that was that tiring? "'Cos it's not very impressive, you teaming up and coming up here. Like the almighty Breeze said, don't you have other things to worry about?"

"Merwin didn't just steal a lot of food, Ladris. He stole a lot of medicine too. We can't spare much more painkillers to Sam here, so we want some of it back, among other things, unless you want a war of course," Edilio said. He was clutching his gun now, looking straight forward.

Sam sent Edilio a pained look, not knowing that he'd eaten so many. His consumptions of the pills had increased to the point of the extreme the last days, but it wasn't his fault, he'd just wanted to reduce the pain in his jaw and head.

"Oh? Sammy's got a headache destroying his ability to think clear? He's a mindless killing machine from before, so I wouldn't think it would change anything. All you need is to tell him to raise his hands and slaughter everything in sight, and it'll be fine, yeah?" Astrid sent her a dirty look, not liking how she spoke of her ex. "Oh fine, I'm joking, no need to be so serious. But don't lie and say you come all the way to Coates for some pills."

"We didn't."

"Then what?"

Edilio said nothing. Took a step to the side, and so did the rest of them, revealing Sam. Diana raised an eyebrow, not impressed. Ignoring how Caine's henchmen (hers as well?) made a move to stop her, raising their guns, Diana walked over to him.

"Now let me look at the wonder boy who apparently gobbles down painkillers like an addict. It's clear that there's something wrong with him."

She could tell. How?

Sam looked at all of them for an escape, not wanting any part of it. But there were none, and Diana waited, standing right in front of him.

He sighed. Then he opened his mouth.

Her eyes widened slightly, and he expected her to take a step backwards or something.

"...Those aren't fake, are they?" she said after a pause, rather quiet.

Sam shook his head, slowly, tryingly, afraid she'd run away screaming any given moment.

Diana repressed the urge to roll her eyes (it was an automatic reflex that came whenever she was about to show accidental emotion of some kind after she'd learnt what that could lead to) and actually pitied him. Goody-two-shoes people often had a very black and white - good and bad view on the world, meaning that if the balance became disturbed, they were at a loss of what to do. When their so-called leader and strongest soldier's appearance became that of a monster, they had no idea what to do.

So what to do?

Seek out what they thought to be monsters. Perhaps they would know what to do.

Diana shrugged, putting up a façade of nonchalance. "Pity. I could've used some to scare some of these kids into submission. But look on the bright side - now you're finally intimidating and kids might do as you say now that you have a pair of new weapons, vampire boy." Her nonchalance and the dry way she spoke actually made Sam feel a little better.

_'Except that they're not weapons.'_

She turned to the staring crowd. "So what do you want me to do about this?"

"We thought you'd experienced something similar, wannabe villains and bootlickers of the creepy thing in the mineshaft and all." To most, it didn't make sense, since the Darkness wasn't viewed as a human and thus wore no boots. Brianna didn't care, her mouth moved just as fast as her legs sometimes, and it was pity her brainpower wasn't quite as fast. "And although they prefer to deny it, Sam and your pompous lover boy are twins, and we thought that may have something to do with it."

"You're suggesting Caine made a deal with Gaiaphage to give him those things?" There was something else that made her more than just unconvinced - her face told she _refused_ to believe it.

Astrid spoke, "We only wondered if someone had experienced any strange things like Sam has."

"None of us are normal here, Ellison."

"You know what I mean."

"I do." Diana took a long breath, but then shrugged. Then she pointed at Sam, face blank, "But someone should really check up on him soon, he's losing a lot of blood."

Sam's jaw accidentally fell, astounded that she'd seen, allowing blood to run down his chin. The people around him stared for a moment, unable to understand why he hadn't told them.

"Why did you-"

"Questions can come later." Diana had turned her back on them and was now calmly walking into the building again. "Sam, you're gonna get blood all over the school grounds and make this place look even more like an aslyum. Come here and follow me."

It was as if she was calling on a dog, but the I-know-better tone in her voice made Sam step forward. He swallowed, "I-"

"I'd be careful about speaking too much, Temple. Those teeth can cut through bone."

That made his shut it.

"Good boy."

"He's not going in there alone," Astrid barked, not too glad that Diana seemed to get more respect from Sam than her. "You lot might have an ambush prepared."

"On such short notice?" Diana smirked. "You give us too much credit, Miss. Brains-with-a-body-attached. And before you feel the need for another pointless exchange of insults, recall that Sammy here is losing a lot of blood."

"I'm n-" And a new waterfall of red came out of Sam's mouth. No doubt his teeth were somehow growing into his gums. Diana got a handkerchief from her pocket and dried it away like nothing had happened.

"The almighty Breeze isn't coming in though. Four people are quite enough."

Brianna's face fell. "Why?" she hissed.

"I don't like you," Diana replied simply. "No one does. Not here, anyway. You're an egoistic and self-centred little shit and I'd rather not have someone throwing lame insults at me while I'm supposed to patch up your favourite child soldier."

"He's not-" Astrid objected, but was interrupted.

"Wait." Dekka seemed to be the only one with something remotely intelligent to say, and Diana turned to her. "Brianna, the original deal was that you leave us when we reached Coates to report back to Albert in Perdido Beach. We need you to keep contact with them, it's important. _You're_ important. Please."

That little ego boost lessened Brianna's bad temper a bit. "Fine then," she said, still a little pissed, "If you don't need me here, I'll go. But don't come crying to me when you're all beaten by these rats!"

Dekka winced, "Brianna-"

She was already gone.

"Let's get going then," Diana said smugly, and the gang followed.

But someone blocked their path.

"Soren wouldn' like it if we invited all of dem 'ere," the red-haired guard insisted. She thought his name was either Tom or Thomas, and she knew he had some throat issues, but couldn't recall why. Other than that, he wasn't anyone important. "They're enemies. An' Soren 'ates Temple," he looked at Sam.

Diana turned to him, blank, yet somehow appeared incredibly challenging. "Feel free to go tell him. You know where he is, everybody does."

One could see the redhead's Adam's apple bob up and down, like the words got stuck in his throat. Diana kept his gaze for the quarter of a second, and then she looked away, and the side of her mouth quirked upwards as she saw him exhale with a shudder in her peripheral vision. Good.

She passed him as if nothing had happened.

They walked through the emptied halls of Coates, and Dekka suddenly realized she didn't miss the place one bit. Nothing but bad memories sat in the walls, memories she wanted to repress, especially in the basement. This would've been her death if it hadn't been for Sam. This was why she sped up a little, preferring to stay close. _'My turn to protect you, Sam.'_

"Watch out. Here be monsters."

Diana's tone was unreadable, so they couldn't tell if she was joking or not. She'd noticed their obvious discomfort and made them even more uncomfortable with five words.

They soon understood that it held a literal meaning, leaving Astrid the only one to wonder if there was more to it.

Penny stood there, leaning against the wall. Most knew about her scary power, the one that made her able to summon monsters with the help of her imagination. Black curls of smoke coiled around her feet like half-transparent snakes, and one could hear a low hissing seemingly _very_ real even if most were aware it was just a mind trick.

"You betraying us also now, Ladris?" she spat.

Diana just frowned as the shadow monsters headed for her. "Stop that."

"Why?"

"Because I don't like it." Bemused, she refused to make a fool out of herself by stomping on one of those snake-like creatures even if she wanted to. "And you know what happens to happens to people who threaten me."

_...the crush that echoed through Coates, followed closely by the sound of glass shattering and thousand pieces flying everywhere. The smell of blood as a girl with chocolate hair dragged a half-dead, shark-like boy through the halls, leaving a red carpet behind them. The screams by said boy as the girl removed pieces of glass from the boy's skin, accompanied by other screams, nightmare ones, coming all the way from the janitor room..._

The memory was all too fresh, and Penny swallowed, eyes narrowing. She had no wish to end up like Drake, full of glass and humiliated beyond reason. She guessed Diana had only helped him out of some misplaced feeling of companionship with the psychopath. So who would save Penny if someone threw her out the window? Not her crush, certainly, since he was most likely the one doing the throwing in the first place.

So the shadow snakes left Diana alone. But Penny needed someone to direct all her anger at, and the snakes headed for Sam Temple, the stupid-four bar that didn't resemble his brother the bit. Penny realized she hated him. A blow to the wretched girlfriend would be better, and suddenly they changed directions again, now going against the paling Ellison.

Her scream of raw terror was music to Penny's ears, not out of sadism but _malevolence_; fueled by a release of her bone-deep frustration. Well, it would've been, hadn't it been for Sam stepping in front of Astrid.

Great, the know-it-all made cuties like Sam back up for her, but Penny still had no one.

_'Bastards, all of them.'_

She had yet to possess the insanity to _really_ imagine some sick shit (she was no psychopath after all), but the snakes were quite terrifying as they became one, a big Cobra that curled up all over Sam. All of them could see the Cobra, and it wasn't accidental from Penny's part, because she loved it when his fellow townies gasped.

Sam froze in fear.

But then something odd happened.

Suddenly, his pupils thinned out even more, and his teeth started pointing outwards like a snake unhitching its mouth. He reached out, out-stretched fingers almost skeleton-like like dangerous claws. Hissing, Sam turned towards Penny, gazing at her like a predator. The blood made his lips look crimson.

He transformed into a monster.

Penny gaped.

All the illusions disappeared like they'd poofed.

But a monster still stood there.

Penny was still staring wide-eyed at him, and so were the rest of the people in the halls, Coates kids and townies alike. If someone could bond over love, could they bond over fear as well? The theory was left unexplored, because Astrid was far too frightened to worry about psychology much longer.

Sam stared right back at Penny, before he suddenly shook his head and he returned to his previous position, jaw shutting close and pupils becoming more normal. He coughed a bit, but other than that, seemed like he wasn't completely aware over what had happened.

"So the mutation affects more than just your brain," Diana noted, breaking an awkward silence. "Good to know. Now let's go, the nurse's office is right in here." Sam followed her, just glad for the distraction. He always did that - following people around. Maybe there was some truth in her words about mindless soldiers?

She led them into Nurse Temple's office and told him to lie down on the bench so she could help him. It was ironic that his mother had been working here and also that Diana had drawn glass shards out of his flesh after Caine had thrown him out of the window.

Diana told Sam to sit, and he did.

Next thing she'd do was order him to bark and she actually doubted that he wouldn't grow a tail and go 'woof woof'. Diana sighed, not even smiling.

While drying blood of his mouth, she decided that he was far easier to deal with than Caine. She didn't know it was because of Sam's current problem or a naturally personality owing to all the gruesomeness he'd experienced over the past weeks. If Caine and Sam had come from the same home, would it all have been different?

She went over his teeth with various materials, being careful not to cut herself on any of them.

"They seem to be made out of some sort of hard material, harder than normal teeth, anyhow. I won't test it in case they will break, but I'd definitely say that they might have the same consistency as steel. You can take it as good news Sam, in case anyone of your friends wanted to try saw them off, which would be impossible."

"We would_ not_ do something like that," Dekka said, annoyed.

"Keep telling yourselves that, Talent. Anyway, Sammy, your gums a pretty sore too, although for some reasons the wounds are all closed and healed. Seems like you've developed fast self-healing. Though wouldn't recommend gritting your teeth too hard or speaking too much until they've stopped growing. Other than that..."

"Another mysterious ability. Great. Can I go now?" Sam asked, still with that annoying lisp of his.

"No. You have a pretty bad fever," Diana said, holding up a thermometer. "And shut it. Don't make me clean you up again."

"But we need to stop it! We need to..."

"What, exactly? Do you even know why you're here? My guess is that your friends tried to dump you here."

"We were just trying to find out if you'd experienced similar things," Edilio insisted. "And by the looks of it, the situation here on Coates is pretty abnormal.

"Like I said, we have nothing to do with this. We're far too busy trying to survive and not starve to death to plot world domination," Diana drawled, only to get a rather suspicious look from all three of the townies. Sam didn't count, not after what she'd collected - they didn't want to bring him back to Perdido Beach, or they'd never dared setting a foot inside here.

"Do you have any proof?" Dekka asked quietly.

"Look, we just want peace. The FAYZ doesn't need another war, and we're far from ready to start one. Hell, we didn't steal from you until people here were actually fucking _dying_. And don't give me that we-would've-helped-you crap, you might tell yourselves that but we all know it's a load of bull. You townies have a very black and white view, whereas we're the bad guys and you're the good guys, when in reality the real monster is lurking out in the desert, growing stronger and stronger."

The Gaiaphage.

They'd hoped and hoped, but deep inside, knew it was an unavoidable theory.

"Why... Why would the Gaiaphage..." Sam clutched his head, groaning in pain. Another headache was building, and the dizziness increased. He was so tired of all this. He'd asked if it was a possibility before, but it had just been hushed down and they'd told him he shouldn't think too much about it.

Diana pitied him. He was far too naïve - and far too trusting.

"So it was the Gaiaphage," Astrid said grimly, staring at Sam, who swallowed thickly, thinking the exact same things as her. "We should've known. We hoped, but..."

Somehow, that thing in the cave had started Sam's mutations.

"That's too bad. Hope gets you nowhere," Diana replied rather crassly. She was far too used to dealing with little children by now, but had expected more of these upper-class townies. "And it happened over a very short amount of time, yes? So I would assume so, 'cos I'm one hundred percent sure neither Merwin nor Soren would've been able to do _anything_ these last few days."

Tension grew between them.

"Where is Soren?" Edilio asked suddenly.

Diana didn't blink. "Caine is unable to talk for the moment."

His eyebrows drew downwards, clearly not pleased with the answer. "How about Merwin?"

"I don't know, I'm not Merwin's babysitter. His last one was the reason he got sent here in the first place. So I don't particularly care where he is either."

"Excuse me if this seems a little too suspicious."

"You're excused."

Astrid scowled, "What are you hiding, Ladris?"

"You just established who is the main villain here, so stop attacking me. I'm a pretty girl, and pretty girls keep secrets. You're a fool to think you would get anything out of me. Now if you'd excuse me, I'm sure you have a lot to talk about since you apparently still distrust me, but I have some business to attend to."

"Now? When Sam is mutating and we're in the midst of trying to discover the plot of the Gaiaphage?"

"Look, Pennywise here is not dying." Diana patted Sam's head again, a little amused. "If I don't do my usual rounds..." The smile fell, and the warning hang in the air.

"What can be more important than the FAYZ' hero dying?!"

Astrid spoke in hisses, "Well Caine Soren isn't here right now-"

"Diana?"

Everybody froze.

Slowly, they all turned, as if any sudden movement would startle the owner of the voice. They recognized it immediately, remembering how it once had held confidence and false politeness, and was now uncertain and hitch-pitched.

_'Oh fuck.'_

A boy stood there, half-hidden behind the door. One could only see half his face, but from what they all gathered, he didn't look too good. There were dark circles underneath his eyes, and his dark-brown hair was greasy and undone, his skin pale and sickly, and eyes deranged and paranoid. Yet there was something oddly innocent about him, the way he hid behind the door like a child hiding behind his mother's skirt when a scary stranger visited.

Almost shyly, he stepped inside the nurse office, looking around as if the room was foreign to him. He didn't appear to look at any of the townies though, acting as if he was alone, or as if were scarier things in the room than them. He was wearing a blue pajamas full of yellow chicks, hunched over like a scared child.

Under his arm there was a worn-out stuffed bear that had hardened blood all over it.

"Caine," Diana greeted.


	3. Like

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything. Freddy's nursery rhyme is from _A Nightmare on Elm Street_.

**A/N:** Lots of love to the good beta!

I hope this isn't too horrible. Been sorta stressed out lately, so it might affect my writing (┳◇┳) Thanks for reading, and thanks for the feedback!

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**Less of Me**

**Part 03: **

**Like**

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The boy that was Caine - but could not be, _could not be_ - stopped twitching, visibly relaxed, smiling. The muscle under his eye still twitched, though.

"Diana!" He went towards her, but stopped dead in his tracks when noticing Sam. He tilted his head to the side started gnawing on his thumb, seeing no others. Diana cast a look at the townies that told them to not make any sudden movements.

Then non-Caine sprang forward and Sam thought he was going to attack, growing hostile. Though invisible arms reached out and held him in place with immense strength, more powerful than the Great Battle between them not long ago. Sam couldn't defend himself.

Yet Caine had no aura of mischief - his face hinted at nothing but a child's curiosity. The same sort of curiosity a child held when poking in a dead insect after having torn its wings off, unaware of death and despair, thinking the goldfishes were sleeping when they went belly up.

With a Cheshire Cat grin Caine's hands flew out and he clasped both palms each side of Sam's face. He touched a few pressure points near Sam's mouth to open it. Sam whimpered, because it hurt, and yet again a thousand swords were drawn across each other, jaw unhinging itself into place so the seemingly endless rows of teeth saw light. How did he know how to do that?

Edilio repressed the urge to swallow thickly - it was a sight he would never become used to - and reached out for Caine to drag him away. Just before his hand touched Caine's arm, hell broke loose. Edilio didn't even manage a "Let him _go-!"_ before he was thrown back against the wall, Dekka and Astrid along with him.

Caine had lifted one finger at them, not even turned towards the townie trio. His full attention was on Sam's teeth. Somehow, without mental boundaries, he was more powerful than ever. Terror played with Sam's heartstrings. He poked at them, almost cutting himself on the razor edges. "Are those real?"

Eyes flickering over to his friends, who seemed alright but with a few scratches added to the collections, Sam managed the slightest of nods. Caine seemed satisfied and the grin returned.

"_Cool_."

No, this definitely wasn't the Caine Sam knew.

Diana came over to them, gently guiding him away from Sam. She patted his head, pushing him down into a chair and signalizing to Sam to lie back down. As Sam did so, a light went up for him. "...You're used to dealing with him, aren't you?"

"Quite." Diana patted Caine's head, and the boy seemed to have gone into some sort of coma while sitting there, grin still plastered across his face. "He's no danger unless provoked."

Edilio brushed dirt of his clothes, thinking how it would've been nice if she'd mentioned it. But he knew better than to voice it - he had no wishes for another interaction with the wall.

"What made him this... way?"

"Insane, you mean? Fearless Leader decided to follow Merwin - always a great idea, getting led astray by a mad dog - into the mineshaft where that _thing_ lurks around. I don't know the details, but it drove him mad and in a futile attempt to keep himself from cracking completely, his mind probably split up into multiple personalities. Haven't seen the normal Caine in a long while now." Diana paused. "Now, he suffers from nightmares and equally terrifying hallucinations. But most of the time his kid version occupied playing with his Teddy Bear. People know better than to come near him."

"You mean that the Gaiaphage drove him insane?" Astrid asked, shuddering at the mention of the terrible Darkness down in the cave.

Diana paused. "Honestly, I don't know. Wasn't in there with them, and it's not like I could ask Drake about it. It's a sore subject, since it's related to the one with y'know, Temple here burning his arm off and all."

Sam shrunk at that, not liking the reminder of the time when murderous compulsion had taken over nearly made him a murderer. Didn't help that it was Merwin - psychopath or not, killing him wouldn't make Sam feel any better.

"And now Merwin's missing. _Poof_." She made quotation marks in the air. "Anyway... Stop chewing on the bottom of your cheek Sam." He shot her a look. "No I don't care whether it's unintentional or not. I'd recommend ice but we don't have any." Sam gave her another helpless look, sliding further down on the bench. All he wanted was the ability sleep without dreaming of destruction and murder.

The townies looked like they wanted to ask both Caine and Diana endless questions but couldn't quite bring themselves to do it, afraid of Caine's random mood. He was humming on some seventies love song, staring at the wall. That couldn't mean anything good.

"Is it purely coincidental that Merwin disappears in the moment when Sam..." Astrid struggled with finding a better description than 'grew gigantic razors in his mouth' and paused.

"When Sam _mutates_?" If it had been a sixties gangster movie, Diana would've leant against the wall while inhaling smoke from a cigarette, looking all cool and classy. She did so, just without the cigarette and looking more distressed than cool and classy. "I could see why you'd believe that. That it's all some great big scheme by the evil green Jell-O to bring down Perdido Beach once and for all."

Sam shook his head. "C-Can't be," he whispered although all the proof was pointing that way. A helper in the Gaiaphage's plan to bring destruction upon everything he loved and cherished... Everything he had left in this world. Some twisted sob-sigh escaped him. Dekka laid a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.

Diana rolled her eyes. Helped Caine stand up. Went over to Sam.

Moping wasn't going to help anyone.

"Well, there isn't much here but death and sickness. You better take your pack with you and head back to Perdido Beach. We can't help you. Caine's out of it and hasn't shown signs of becoming better..." Especially not when he'd thrown Merwin out the window. "...and I need to control the kids here. Without Merwin around to scare everyone shitless, a war may start, odds on Coates' side or not."

Edilio swallowed thickly and rubbed his arching forehead, feeling the beginning of a migraine come into existence.

War was the last thing they needed, what with Sam's little teeth problem and all. Astrid was also rubbing her temple after the head-first interaction with the wall a minute ago.

If Sam was a product of Gaiaphage's scheme however, things looked darker than ever. Not only would they be forced to kill or at least heavily sedate their best soldier, leader and hero of Perdido Beach, but also destroy their friend and boyfriend. No easy task if you were the one holding the gun.

Worst thing was that Sam knew it. He also knew that his instincts wouldn't let him lie down and take it for the greater good or not, he'd fight until the last moment where the transformation was complete and...

_Transformation_? Where had that come from?

Caine gave him an ultra creepy grin, thereafter resumed whispering to his stuffed bear. His expression was super serious, as if the conversation wasn't one-sided but a hard debate between man and toy. Everything Sam could make out was "...hungry in the dark..." and he decided he was better off not knowing.

"I'll show you to the exit. When the sun goes down, all the nocturnal animals come out." Diana looked around her as she walked out from Nurse Temple's office, "And I'm talking about _all_ of them, not just those hiding in woods and deserts."

"Hungry in the dark," Caine commented dreamily, and loudly this time. Sam hid a shiver. There was something he couldn't quite put his finger on with that statement that made the iciest of colds go down his spine. Pain became worse. Sam pressed his eyelids so tightly together it stung.

"Yes yes Caine, we know." Diana shoved him forward to the door.

Everyone else followed, except Sam. Just after Caine had been led away, the pain was building itself up inside his mouth. A pain that steadily grew worse, but not to the point of unbearable. Even so, he knew his friends' silence came from many things, one of them being a growing concern that Sam would lose it just like Caine had.

Hands that could barbeque flesh and teeth that could slice out organs added to the list weren't making him less dangerous. Put batshit insane on top of that and you have yourself quite the hero.

A madman as a protector wasn't too smart. But he was their sole freak with enough ever-lasting strength (unlike guns, where bullets would run out sometime) to keep wild creatures and uprising dangers on hold.

"Brother."

Sam almost jumped two meters into the air. Right in front of him stood Caine, still smiling. Diana leant against the doorframe, making sure Caine wouldn't explode Sam or something. "Come on~!" he sang softly, taking Sam's hand and leading him out. "_He'll_ be here soon."

"H-He?" Sam stammered.

"You know who," Caine urged on, something dark flashing over his face, and then looked as happy as ever like the momentary darkness had never been there in the first place. It was deeply unsettling. He turned to Diana and she shrugged, dismissing it as crazy talk. With her lack of reaction, Sam guessed Caine said a lot of things that didn't make sense.

The rest of the townies walked deep in their own thoughts.

"Coates is quiet," Astrid noted as she passed some Coates students. Not one of them said a word, but they leered, looked at Caine, and immediately looked away.

"Did he murder someone or something?" Edilio asked Diana, volume low, so Caine wouldn't hear. A tiny but louder, he continued, "People here seem awfully scared of him."

Caine was there again then, suddenly sprinting forth from beside Edilio, making him flinch. How did he do that? "You fear Sammy too, yet he's about as harmless as a kitty." He then proceeded to take circles around them like a kid pretending to be a jet or a bird.

Sam mustered up some courage to talk back to his twin but before he could, a shriek echoed through the big building. All froze, and the sound of fanatic footsteps from the floor under was heard, followed by gunshots and screams.

Crashes followed and so did even more _bang!_s, hard and loud and merciless.

Thinking fast, Dekka held out her arms and pushed them backwards into an empty classroom. They hid behind the door. Diana followed, her hand in Caine's, making sure he wouldn't randomly run towards danger like the lunatic he was.

Laboured breathing followed. The terrible pain in Sam's teeth grew even worse.

The gunshots neared, and it became silent for a while. Someone was coming their way though, and they could hear it. It had to be the murderer, because he or she was walking slowly, calmly. There was a shadow from underneath a door, and they could make out a lean figure carrying two guns. It stopped. Edilio and Dekka both pulled out their guns, soundless.

A voice might have saved them.

"Merwin what are you-"

_Bang!_

What followed was the disgusting sound of someone getting their head blown up and someone cackling. "C'mon Sammy, come out come out wherever you are," Drake crooned loudly, starting to mutter on a nursery crime from one of his favourite flicks as a kid. _"One, two, Freddy's coming for you~"_

Sam couldn't entirely recall what it was from, his mind far too focused on how the hell Drake knew he was here. In slow motion, ignoring the concerned looks of his friends, he turned his brother. Caine sat at a desk, swinging his feet back and forth and smiled innocently.

"_Three, four, better lock your door!_"

"You knew," Sam whispered, blocking out the screams.

The smile got a sharper edge.

Several seconds passed.

_"Five six, grab your crucifix!"_ Drake had shouted it even more loudly now from further down the hall, shooting down some other unsuspecting people. It seemed to have become his theme or some sort, always singing it whenever he blasted down a decent amount of Coates students. Just to scare. It worked alright, because Sam snapped out off it.

"We need to get out!" Astrid whispered. "Now!"

"Merwin's headed towards one of the exits. The main entrance downstairs means going down the stairs, and there's no way we'd manage it down there without the Breeze's super speed. There's no way out, not when Merwin could come running and blow our heads off any moment."

Sam's throat went dry. Drake was going to find them eventually.

"I know a way," Caine confessed. Everybody turned to him, but he was smiling like a child knowing where he'd hid it but had no qualms keeping it for himself for amusement. Diana bent down in front of him, making sure to get eye contact.

"Tell us, Caine."

His eyes flickered to Sam.

"Right outside the janitor room there's a broken backdoor that hasn't been used for years since no one went down there except the janitor." He giggled. "Then the FAYZ came along and someone broke it open~ His name was Lucas. I asked him. He tried to leave through the door when I came. I told him not to use it. First he wouldn't listen." Like what had followed was obvious, Caine didn't explain the matter any deeper.

"I thought that was ruined after some seventh graders placed explosives there," Dekka said.

"Was." Caine shook his head so his greasy bangs hid his face, "No one cares for interior anymore. Lucas exploded it open again. It's cold downstairs... cold... cold... _cold_..."

Diana gave a short nod to the rest of the gang. "Merwin won't hesitate to shoot me or Caine after he went after so many Coates students. I heard Isabella scream. No doubt wherever he's been convinced him to give into his murderous urges and slaughter everybody who annoys him - which is basically the whole of the human race-"

**BANG! **

_"Seven, eight, stay up late!"_

God, where had he gotten his guns? That was an explosion of some kind.

"You're coming with us, then," Edilio said when he'd found his voice, "If we'll even make it out of here."

"Great! It'll be super duper fun~! Like in a superhero cartoon, teaming up and all!"

Three sets of eyes turned to Caine.

"That depends..." Astrid began.

"Why should we trust you?" Dekka finished quietly, crossing her arms. She'd seen the look on Sam's face. She'd heard the tone he'd used. And Dekka Talent wasn't stupid - there was an understanding between the brothers (whereas one had dived into madness and the other was standing on the edge of the abyss) there wasn't words for. And that understanding could prove to be more dangerous than ever.

"Oh, but you don't have a choice~!"

Caine opened the door and everybody flinched, half-expecting Drake burst through it and shout "_surprise_!" Thank god it didn't happen, or it would've given Astrid a heart attack. Only so much a girl could manage, and her nerves weren't particularly well off with worrying about Sam turning into a psycho monster any minute.

"Let's go!" Caine said, both arms out like a jet ready for take off, then hurrying down the halls of Coates academy. Dekka had a moment of bitter nostalgia - she remembered how children had still run down these halls when the bell had rung, some fucked in the head, but still children.

There were no children here anymore.

_"Nine, ten, never sleep again!" _

Somewhere behind them it exploded.

Just a gang of soldiers and monsters running for the lives to not get killed by a crazed sadist with guns. Age had no matter. At least not when you were bleeding out on the floor or dying in a dark corner. A corpse was a corpse, an emptied vessel, nothing more nothing less.

Sam stopped, breathing hard. Normally, he'd been the one in the fastest size both thanks to his agility from being a surfer and the relief of not carrying heavy weapons like Dekka or Edilio. But thanks to the ever gnawing pain at his gums, it made it harder to concentrate on pushing every last bit energy into running and not pondering on big questions. Over thinking was never wise.

He was tired, oh so tired.

"Saaaaaammy~!"

Oh holy shit no.

Drake stood there, smirking like a madman. He twirled his gun in his hand. "Was surprised when I got to know you were here. Oh well - two birds with one stone. Now you just be a good boy and get over here Temple or I'll-"

He had no way of finishing the insult because Dekka had sprung forth. Again and again and again proving that all females weren't sappy creatures who sobbed over mascara stains or dramatic books she pulled out a gun and aimed for Drake's heart. Thanks to Drake's time on the battlefield he managed to dodge the bullet so it only sliced his shoulder. Pain still blended him for a moment as he dived behind a corner, long curses escaping him.

"What were you _thinking_?!" Dekka grabbed hold of Sam's shoulder and pulled him backwards to an awaiting trio - whereas Caine was already running from them. They struggled to keep up, and Sam to keep his breakfast in. Seeing Drake's shoulder explode like that had been nasty - but why hadn't he killed Sam when he'd had the chance?

Over thinking again.

He should be glad he was still alive.

"Door's in here," Diana said, pushing Sam forward. Edilio caught sight of Drake behind them and fired a few more shots, hurrying into the door as Drake shot back. Bullets flew all around his head and Edilio threw himself down.

"Fucking Merwin..."

"I tell myself that daily," Diana said dryly, locking the door as Edilio tumbled down with the rest of the townies. The doorknob shook when they'd made their way down the stairs, making Astrid freeze. The other soldiers were far too busy stabilizing their breathing.

"It won't keep him for long," Dekka said breathlessly, "Let's go."

They went out into a jungle. No Coates kid had interest in gardening, it seemed, or perhaps the plant life there had come alive and eaten those who tried. Edilio snorted at his own imagination, deciding he shouldn't have been reading comics last night. Better than war stories or anything related to his daily work though.

Caine was already far in front of them.

Bullets flew all around them.

Drake stood on the principal's balcony - the one where he'd stood and greeted students (and their parents) each year - one foot planted on the fence. Loading his rifle, he looked like a bloodied devil.

"I'll get you, Temple," Drake screamed, though it was clear he didn't aim for Sam. Wanted to keep him alive, they realized when he fell and Drake didn't even grace the ground around him, instead shooting at a faster-moving Ellison. "And when I do, you'll regret not coming willingly!"

Barely, they managed to escape and hid behind the Coates walls. Drake disappeared a moment after, probably to come after them. "Where will we go?" Diana breathed.

"We 'an't go ta d' town," Sam choked out.

Avoiding him, they all nodded. They knew what it implied. Everybody had their theories, but they knew all of this couldn't be happening at random.

"The forest is full of animals," Edilio said.

"The desert?" Diana suggested, sharing looks with all of them. A backpack they hadn't seen her pick up was slung in front of them. "I brought food and bottled water. I always had it with me, in case of being locked up or something, or if Caine somehow destroyed all the food. It's enough for us to hide."

"Wait, the desert? Isn't that where the Gaiaphage lurks?"

"Exactly. It's the last place he'd look."

"We don't exactly have much choice anyway," Dekka said, casting a look back at Coates. "He'll be her any minute, probably with some of Coates' fancy, _gasoline-filled_ cars. We can't travel by road - he'll be patrolling it, and make the survivors listen - and not through the forest, y'know that."

"Desert it is, then."

They had no time to waste and started walking.

.

.

Caine was smiling again, running after a butterfly, giggling like a child.

"Why is he like this?"

"He's crazy," Edilio answered.

"Diana?"

"Chunk was his name," Diana began without answering.

"What?"

"The one Caine murdered. Chunk woke me during the middle of night, demanding that I'd go stop the screaming Caine was doing, and when I refused decided to do it himself. Caine didn't like that. Not one bit." The child-like four-bar bit at his teeth not to giggle hysterically beside her.

"He ripped a limb off and threw him into a wall at the cafeteria, then proceeded to smash Chunk into the wall repeatedly until he looked like an animal someone had driven over. We were eating breakfast at the time. Wasn't pretty."

"Sam~!" Caine suddenly called out, smiling.

Frowning, Sam turned to his twin.

Caine smiled brightly at him, giggling. "He's hungry in the dark." Then he ripped the butterfly's wings clean off, threw it to the ground, and stomped on it all while giving a rather psychopathic laugh.

For some reason, that made his teeth hurt enough to make him spit out fresh blood, not managing to swallow it like when he'd been escaping Drake. Too bad his friends noticed, turning to them in the exact moment where Sam opened his mouth to let red liquid drip from his mouth.

When he noticed he clasped his mouth shut so fast he automatically winced. Caine waved one hand in the air, using the other one to point frantically at Sam like a tattler.

Diana crossed her arms.

"_Temple_."

Sam closed his lips so tightly together they became white, contrasting against the blood still running from it. His gums felt rawer than ever. He hated how they looked at him and in a moment where the tiny dark urges slipped through his iron hold, he hissed at them and opened his mouth.

The watchers staggered.

"Jesus _Christ_ they're growing."

And this time, the darkness wouldn't let go completely either. In the corner of Sam's left eye, only viewable to Caine who stood very, very close, blackness was edging upwards like a smoky shadow. Ready to consume the white and bright and twist Sam's view on this world.

"_Cool_."


	4. Sheep

**Disclaimer:** disclaimed.

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**Less of Me**

**Part 04: **

**Sheep**

.

.

They couldn't see it.

They couldn't see the thin veils in all colours of the rainbow stretching up and down and left and right. Like threads they connected certain people and events carefully placed by the Creators, most held only by a few and easily-torn ones. Some, however, had entire webs sticking out from their backs, as complicated as the golden swishing rings that made out people Caine only saw after waking up from a nightmare.

Madness opened your sight for this.

"Don't run too far ahead, Caine!"

The boy turned, discontinuing the symbols in the sand. No one would understand except the mad. Maybe some more sanities would slip away in the cause of the next few days. Then they'd be able to see alright. His brother first though.

Because out of Sam's back, there was one long, green, wool-like substance that went directly into the mineshaft, thick enough to block the sound. And in Caine's vision, if he looked extra hard, Sam would cease be a boy and become something else entirely.

"We're not gonna stand and wait, you know," Edilio shouted.

Caine just smiled, and ran along.

.

.

After shooting down survivors, Drake walked out from the Coates academy building. His outfit - tattered rags, mostly - was covered in a mix of blood, both his own and his victims. They were all trivial. Those who hadn't fled when Drake had approached looking murderous with a bunch of guns wouldn't last much longer in the FAYZ anyway.

Tire gnawed at his soul, and so did the pain in his shoulder. Though he'd bandaged it so he wouldn't loose enough blood for it to be life-threatening, Drake knew it could cause long-lasting damage if he didn't get it healed. He had no idea where the townie healer was, so he had to return to his master.

Dizziness and made him think slower. Because if he'd been without wounds and adrenaline from the massacre he'd realized that walking many miles to find the Healer were better than coming back to the mineshaft - empty-handed, hurt and with the mission failed.

The screams that followed later that night were bad enough to make the coyote pack switch places.

.

.

The gang of two Coates kids and four townies was resting near a few rocks. The night in the desert was cold, but merciful in comparison to the heat during daytime. The desert was also a dangerous thing, almost devoid of animal life and water. Sam had gone into a nearby cave, needing some time alone.

Dekka and Edilio were sleeping, and it was Astrid and Diana's turn to be night guards.

At the moment, Astrid was going through their bag. "That should be quite enough," she finished out loud, placing her hands on her hips. One could see her blue eyes flickering back and forth from the light of the tiny fire, well sheltered behind rocks, so that no one would follow the light. Paranoid? Who wasn't, with a psychopath lurking about?

"Hm?" Diana turned her head towards Astrid, stretching her arms upwards.

"We have enough food and water for two days ahead," Astrid answered. Dekka shifted in her light sleep, and the other girls lowered their volume not to wake the soldier. Edilio slept nearby, heavier than his female comrade.

"And _why_ do you presume we need that?"

"Well we aren't going back to Coates." Diana shot her a look. "We aren't going back to Perdido Beach _either_. It's been decided."

"Ah, yes. I forgot you believe Sammy-boy is a maniacal monster ready to kill us at any given moment."

"Quiet," Astrid hissed, looking towards the cave. To change the subject, she looked around. "Where's Caine?"

"He comes back. Always does," Diana said, waving it away. "Temple might not though, if you continue pushing him away..."

"Shut up. What _is_ it with you and Sam anyway?" Astrid was envious. She couldn't help it. Diana had toyed so much with Sam lately, pretending his mutation was no big deal, almost setting them up against each other. It was hard enough convincing Sam realize the danger he was and still remain friends. Diana went in like an outsider and pretended to be on Sam's side in the situation, smirking and patting his head.

The way Diana continuously mocked Astrid wasn't helping either.

"I tolerate him, which is more than I can say for most of you." Diana's eyes were hard and cold, tone just as icy. "No, his teeth don't unsettle me. Nor does his attitude, because he only acts when provoked, and I know better to provoke someone from experience. Believe me. In fact, I feel sorry for him. Having such an uncaring girlfriend could drive anyone over the edge."

Diana's smirk was cold and smug, and before Astrid could burst out with some reply, Sam entered and Diana greeted him at once. "Sammy! We were talking about you just now." He blinked, sitting down beside her. "Only good things, I assure you. Good things about you, at least."

Sam nodded slightly, not sure what to make from her words. "Alright... Good night." He sighed and curled up, drifting to sleep. Both the girls responded with a "Good night" back, and then glared at each other for speaking at the same time. Astrid had no desire to speak more of the subject previously discussed, and drifted off to sleep.

Some calming music might have fitted now, Diana thought. She positioned herself more careful against the rocks, putting out the fire. Not after the fire had gone out, a dark form came towards the group of people.

It stood there for a long time, a few meters from them. One couldn't see anything other than a shadow, but instincts told Diana who it was. Not once did she doubt the identity. After spending so much time with him, it was only logical. "Caine."

"It's Soren."

He'd had a personality change again, she mused. This time, he seemed more grown and not preoccupied chasing and torturing butterflies, but still playful. He sometimes drifted away when like this, disappearing from this world for minutes or hours. Daydreaming, but on a deeper level. When he woke, he'd either be disturbed, terrified or just plain odd.

Where have you been?"

"Around." He sat down, curling his legs up.

"And what have you been doing?"

"Stuff."

Diana poked in the fire with a stick. She saw him flinch, but didn't comment on it. Sparks flew up from the dying fire. Caine watched it, fascinated. "Were you with Sam?" she asked.

He took so long to answer she thought he'd slipped into wonderland again. It made her flinch - but only a little - when he answered. "He's my brother, I'm always with him." There was something dreamy about his voice.

"In a physical sense," Diana clarified.

Caine tilted his head to the side, eyebrows furrowing. "Phy-si-cal?" He tasted the word like an old man chewing on a cigar, trying to make meaning of the word. "Ah, yes. And no. He didn't know I was in there with him. He never knows when I'm there."

"You've been watching him, Soren?"

In the darkness, it was hard to make out Caine's expression. She had to rely on her ears when it came to this. "For a long time, yes." And boy did he sound sinister.

"And what have you seen?"

"You wouldn't understand." He'd dwelled on this - she could tell by his direct answer. "There are veils of gold and green, and brightness and laughter. Nobody understands, except the child." There was an undertone there she couldn't quite make out, but she could tell he was grinning. And...

_'The child?'_ "You mean the kid version of yourself? You're aware of each other?"

Caine didn't answer.

Seconds ticked by.

"D-Diana?"

Her gaze returned to him, only to find him crawling closer.

"Caine," she greeted. He usually changed only after sleeping or experiencing something unusual or shocking. He'd sometimes change randomly as well, probably when something major happened inside his head, like a realization of some sort, too horrifying for him to cope with.

"There's a monster out there," he whispered, lightening-stuck. Diana allowed him to come even closer, laying his head on her lap. She was no pillow, but she could allow him that, this once. "He's coming this way."

"I know," she whispered back, running her fingers through his hair. Didn't take long until he fell asleep, gnawing on his thumb like always. She couldn't bring herself to wake him and tell him to piss off, nor did she dare thinking too much over his words.

Truth was among them, but his words brought about a far darker fate than what she'd imagined, no matter how she twisted and turned on them.

A sigh escaped her. "I know you're awake, Talent."

Dekka crossed her arms, spitting out some sand to the side. Former attraction to the girl in front of her didn't lessen the suspicion. "What was that_..._?"

"Crazy talk," she said almost immediately. Diana continued to run her fingers through Caine's hair. "He says a lot of things, most of them effects of the nightmares he suffer from. Can't tell the difference between real and imaginary, poor thing."

A pause. "I sure hope he isn't right."

"About what?"

"That there's a monster headed our way."

Another pause.

"Y'know, Talent, for once I think we might have something in common. You see, I don't like Merwin any more than you do. I definitely don't want him to sneak over here, either."

She was rewarded with silence, but a silent understanding passed between them. Coates kids often had that connection. Not like they'd ever acknowledge it. Caine could see the bonds between the Coates kids, brittle but still _there_, although his own bonds were ripped into sheds, except the one linking him to Diana.

"Whatever. I'll take the guard shift, you just go to sleep and make sure Soren doesn't go on a murder spree or something."

"Can't make sure of that, Talent," Diana was a smirk, but laid back, helping Caine to lie beside her instead of on top of her. "Good night, although I doubt it'll be any good, sleeping out here."

"Just sleep, Diana," Edilio said from his place in the shadows.

"Will do, with the knowledge that watchful the soldiers protect me."

Edilio rolled his eyes, stepping forth to sit back to back against Dekka. Normally they wouldn't make contact, but they exchanged body heat instead of leaning into ice-cold stones. Dekka wrapped the blanket tighter around them.

It was going to be a long night.

.

.

They woke by gunshots.

Or, more specifically, they woke from gunshots and Caine screaming.

The half-sleeping guards got up in a millisecond, shoving the rest of half-sleeping group into shelter behind the rocks. Bullets flew off the barrier. "He found us," Edilio breathed, struggling to refill his lungs and calm his fanatic heart. It wasn't necessary to state who 'he' was. "I don't know how, but he found us."

The fake sun barely peeped over the horizon, creating a beautiful - but fake - sunset. Or it would've been fake, hadn't it been blood-red, almost reflecting all the blood spilled the last day. Diana shuddered.

Sam had gone white. "Where- ... Where's-" he couldn't form the words right, chewing on the insides of his cheeks in frustration. His teeth problem grew worse and worse. Just having woken up didn't help and Sam cleared his throat desperately. Luckily, Diana voiced his worry.

"Where's Ellison?"

Everybody looked around. Edilio hid nearest the open ground, Dekka beside him, both with their guns drawn and held up. Then there was Sam, and Diana, and Caine. No sight of Astrid anywhere.

"Oh Sammy~" it came from behind the rocks.

In slow motion, Sam stood up. Dekka grabbed his arm, dragging him down again. "What are you thinking? He'll shoot you!"

"No he won't," Sam said almost sadly, looking over the rocks. "I'm the reason he's here in the first place, if not to annihilate Soren." Only giggles escaped Caine when he'd been mentioned.

Drake Merwin stood there, gun in one hand, other slung around a pale Astrid's neck. "Hey! Sammy! Nice of you to come out and see me!" Behind him was the sun, making it almost impossible to see his face. But they could all tell what kind of expression he was wearing - something only Drake Merwin could pull off.

Or not. He wasn't the only one who could fit the description 'grin with far too many teeth' anymore.

"What do you want?" Sam asked through gritted teeth; quite a feat. The need to repress his anger outmatched the pain that came with doing so.

"'What do you _want'_?" Drake mimicked Sam, laughing hysterically afterwards. "Oh Sammy, isn't that obvious? I come all the way to fetch you for your master and this is what you reward me with? Pretending not to know?"

"I dunno what you're talkin' about," Sam spat.

Edilio used that moment to jump forth from their little fort, shooting at Drake. He regretted it a moment later when Drake used Astrid as a shield, the bullets barely missing her as he shoved her in front of him.

"Aw, Escobar, that wasn't nice _at_ all." He started choking Astrid. "Punishment time~ Get out of there now, or I'll break her leg."

Sam immediately stepped forward. The rest was a bit slower, Dekka begrudgingly coming last. Diana and Caine however, continued to hide, and it seemed like Drake didn't know they were there. He said nothing though - just smirked.

"What do you really want, Merwin?" Dekka snarled. "And don't speak in riddles!"

"Riddles? Oh but I got a good one! What happens when a princess sleeps so heavily she doesn't notice the monster coming out from the woods to devour her? A knight in a shining armor comes and saves her, of course!" Drake sent a pointed look at Sam. One could see Astrid's Adam's apple bob and they all held their breath, afraid he was going to snap her neck. "...It wasn't hard. Did I wear you out yesterday? That's why you slept so heavily?"

"Shut up!"

"Careful, Sam." Yet again he was choking the life out of Astrid.

"N-No! Wait! Please!"

Drake smirked. "You're such a little bitch, Sammy." He did loosen the hold though.

"At least we're not a psychopath who has to sneak up on a girl to feel like a man," Dekka spat.

Rage crossed Drake's features.

He lifted the gun. Everybody held their breaths and hoped it wasn't them he was aiming for, some closing their eyes. Sam was staring directly at Drake, holding his eyes. _'Shoot at me instead.' _He hadn't muttered it out loud, but Drake got the message alright.

So he held the gun a little more to the west and shot.

Sam opened his eyes. He felt no pain, not counting the one because of his teeth.

Second after, a muffled scream tore itself from Edilio's throat as he lost balance. Blood oozed from his left foot, and it became clear that Sam hadn't been a target. Sam sprung forth, eyebrows narrowing into slits. "Merwin! Stop hurting him!"

Lisp was in place, making Drake looked at him, smirk vanishing for a moment once he noticed the ivory twinkle. Fascinated, he watched the beast teeth. Sam grew wary, not liking Drake's look.

"Son of a bitch!" Edilio spat, sitting up and clutching his ruined foot. He searched for his gun. Drake - without ever tearing his gaze from Sam - responded by shooting at him until he hit Edilio in the other foot. The Honduran choked back yet another scream. It ended up as a gut-wrenching animalistic growl.

"Merwin!" Sam desperately shouted and stepped forth and in front of Edilio.

"What? I'm only repaying him." Drake shrugged, lethal grin widening as he studied the gun. "In fact, I'll continue doing this until every last one of you is a bloodied mess at the ground." Drake wasn't lying; he never did about these sorts of things. With his whip around her neck, Astrid was on the verge of passing out.

"...unless..." Sam began of the finishing of Drake's sentence, lisp still in place. It was hard to speak, and he opened his mouth, teeth sticking out in a manner that was terrifying but more comfortable. "...Unless I go with you."

"And then there's that... Then there's that." Drake held the gun over his shoulder. No one dared shooting at him anyways, not when he could kill the hostage before he hit the ground. "Tell you what. Sammy can come over here, and I'll give you Ellison."

"No way. We're not switching one life for another," Dekka said, helping Edilio. Thank god they had Lana - if not, there wasn't a certainty that he would walk ever again. He twisted and turned in pain, inhaling in whistling sounds. Yet he was strong - not screaming, not drawing attention to himself.

"Oh, I won't kill him. But you knew that, didn't you, Temple?"

"He'll bring me to the Gaiaphage," Sam said sadly.

"You knew?"

"People don't grow teeth that long without reason, Talent," Drake drawled.

"Shut up! Sam-"

"Y'know, I'm getting bored of all this. And when I get bored, bad things tend to happen." Drake held the gun towards Astrid's head, finger on the trigger. He felt the Darkness probe at his mind boundaries, and eager to please (and not get tortured) he let the Gaiaphage watch through his eyes.

"No! Stop!" Sam walked towards him. "I'll come. Just- Just don't hurt anybody."

"Temple! Don't!"

"He'll kill all of you till I move. Please, step aside."

Begrudgingly, Dekka stepped away from him. He nodded and walked towards Drake. The Gaiaphage seemed pleased and let go of Drake, allowing his eyes to lose their ebony shimmer.

The sun had made Drake appear all dark, making it impossible to look at him without being blended from far away. First now, when Sam was about a meter from him, he understood why Drake's sadistic happiness had sounded so fake.

Scars decorated the sadist, clothes torn nearly to shreds. Through the ripped shirt one could catch glimpses of purple and blue bruises, most looking remotely fresh. Blood covered the side of Drake's neck; a bright red smear. His eyes were swollen from lack of sleep, hair lifeless and full of dirt, and face pale. _Who _or_ what_ had tortured him was quite clear.

One couldn't see the damage on the inside though, and Sam doubted the Gaiaphage had left Drake's mind undisturbed.

Drake woke Sam out of his mental slumber with a quick movement, sending Astrid head-first into the sand. Sam was by her side in a moment, helping her up while the girl regained her breath. Drake kicked Sam into the sand as well, keeping him down with his foot. "She can move on her own, Sammy."

Scrambling on her feet, Astrid headed for safety. Her cheeks burnt and she hated herself, but fear gripped the edges of her guilt and tore it to pieces when Drake waved a gun at her. She still bore marks on her neck from the tentacle's hold.

"That's right! Run!"

She did.

"And if you follow me I'll blow Sam's brains out," Drake warned, looking directly at Dekka.

"Then why would you bring him back alive?"

"Simply 'cos - believe me - _He_ would have so much more fun then."

Sam swallowed thickly, standing up. When he'd regained balance, Drake's tentacle wrapped around his arm, securing that he wouldn't escape. He then drew up some ropes he'd hid in his jeans pockets (which somehow remained intact) and wrapped them behind Sam's back. "Let's go."

Just before Drake was about to leave, he caught sight of Caine standing up from behind the rocks. Fearless Leader just tilted his head to the side, curious. Then he grinned a dangerous grin. Pointing to Drake, he then put a finger to his mouth and made a _"Shh"_ sound.

Drake blinked. He did not know what to make out of it. He tried to scowl and change directions again, but the pain reminded him what mental images the Gaiaphage had put in his head when he'd been on the verge of breaking free. In a moment of... pity, perhaps, of a sense of old companionship, Drake turned away again like he'd seen nothing. He forgot that the Gaiaphage could extract things from his mind as well as infuse them.

He dragged Sam after him.

Sam cast helpless look as his friends disappeared more and more until he couldn't see them. Dekka had looked like she wanted nothing but gun down Drake and scatter the pieces in the wind. But Edilio's ruined feet posed a problem. He was tough though - keeping his mouth shut, possessing a glare that would've broken down a lesser man. But Drake was no lesser man, he was a monster.

They continued

Drake started looking around when they'd gotten a distance away. Suspicious, he looked around. "If your worthless friends try save you I won't hesitate to shoot them, Temple."

In other cases he would've retorted with something to defend his friends, but he caught sight of something far more interesting. The gun stuck out of Drake's pocket in a very desirable way, making it easy to snatch out. "That is, if you can see them."

"They're here?" Apart from rocks, there weren't much else in the desert. But there were hiding places behind them, and Drake moved his head even more fanatically. "Let's get going, then. We're soon there and they can't hurt us when-"

Sam grabbed after the gun. Drake's whip snapped in the air, hitting him across the hand - but Sam refused to give in and held it tight. Backing away from the sadist, he took the gun to his own head.

Drake's eyes widened for a second, and then he smirked.

Sam's breathing was shallow.

"...C'mon. Do it, Temple. I know you wanna. Question is; you got the guts to shoot your brains out?"

Sam's trembling increased, and so did his heart rate. He clicked off the safety, closing his eyes tightly. _'It'll be the best,' _he told himself._ 'It'll stop all future suffering... The Gaiaphage will make you into a mind slave, just like Merwin, or mess with you mentally, like Caine.' _But... But he couldn't. He couldn't pull the trigger.

The gun fell to the sand.

"Knew as much," Drake said, sounding oddly disappointed as he picked it up. "Oh well..." His whip flew across Sam's chest. "Don't make a sound, Temple. I would've hurt you more hadn't it been for my promise to our master not to hurt you." Our master...? The curiosity got washed away with pain as Drake struck him again. "Few scratches won't hurt though, so _behave_."

Sam inhaled deeply.

"Aw, is itty bitty Sammy gonna cry?" Drake grabbed his chin and forced his head up, smirking. His smelled like blood. Bastard. "N'aw, Drakie will make it all better..."

"S-Shut up..." Sam started walking again, just to get a move on. Drake smirked and tugged at his restraints, making Sam fall head-first into the sand. A manic laughter followed. Sam gritted his teeth and stood up again. Yet... Yet there was something wrong with the way Drake laughed, like it was sort of pushed.

"Betcha you want to run back to your little troop, yeah? Lying to me that they're here, Tch, like they'd ever risk their lives to come after someone like you..." Drake started removing the bindings. Sam frowned and rubbed them, studying the damage while Drake threw the ropes away. "Too bad you can't... 'Cos you're passed out in the sand."

And Sam could only look up in dumbstruck shock before Drake's fist flew across his face and sent him into blackness.


End file.
